McDavid Named OHL Scholastic Player of the Year
Toronto, ON – The Ontario Hockey League today announced the recipients of the league’s three Academic Player of the Year awards for the 2013-14 season.
Connor McDavid of the Erie Otters is the recipient of the Bobby Smith Trophy as Scholastic Player of the Year, with Adam Craievich of the Guelph Storm named the Ivan Tennant Memorial Award recipient as Top High School Student, and Patrick Watling of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds is the Roger Neilson Memorial Award recipient as Top Post-Secondary School Student Athlete.
All three players will be formally presented with their awards at the annual OHL Awards Ceremony on Tuesday June 3. McDavid will be the OHL’s nominee for CHL Scholastic Player of the Year which will be announced on Saturday May 24 as part of the events at the 2014 MasterCard Memorial Cup in London.
Bobby Smith Trophy (OHL Scholastic Player of the Year) – Connor McDavid, Erie Otters
Connor McDavid, a 17-year-old from Newmarket, ON, currently attends McDowell High School in Erie where he achieved a 92% average during the first semester while taking courses that included University prep English, Algebra, and Contemporary Issues. He currently carries an 87% average in his final semester of Grade 11. McDavid becomes the third member of the Otters to earn Scholastic Player of the Year honours since it was first presented in 1980 following teammate Adam Pelech in 2012, and Brad Boyes who earned the award in 2000.
“This is a tremendous honour, school is very important to me and my family,” McDavid said. “It’s hard to balance hockey and school, but it’s nice to be rewarded with an award like this. It’s (School’s) something I take a lot of pride in and I feel it’s very important to do well in.”
On the ice, McDavid finished fourth in OHL scoring with 99 points in 56 games competing in his second OHL season with the Otters. The OHL’s Rookie of the Year last season, McDavid was the first overall pick in the 2012 OHL Priority Selection. Eligible for the 2015 NHL Draft, McDavid also earned the William Hanley Trophy as the league’s Most Sportsmanlike Player of the Year this season and was the youngest player to represent Canada at the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship.
“This is an example of the goal oriented, high character person Connor is,” said Otters’ Governor and General Manager Sherry Bassin. “He should have a sense of pride in his attempt to be the best at all he’s doing. Connor is a product of a special environment and his parents should be very proud of what a special young man they have raised.”
Each year the Bobby Smith Trophy is presented to the OHL Scholastic Player of the year who best combines high standards of play and academic excellence. The trophy is in honour of Bobby Smith, former Ottawa 67’s star who exhibited a standard of excellence in both of these areas. Past winners to also receive the award as a 17-year-old include Ryan Ellis (Windsor 2007-08), Steven Stamkos (Sarnia 2006-07), and Dustin Brown (Guelph 2000-01) who is the only three-time award recipient. Other recent recipients include current NHL players Dougie Hamilton (Niagara 2010-11), Erik Gudbranson (Kingston 2009-10), and Matt Duchene (Brampton 2008-09). Darnell Nurse of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds was last year’s recipient.
Finalists for the award include Roland McKeown of the Kingston Frontenacs, Brendan Perlini of the Niagara IceDogs, and Travis Konecny of the Ottawa 67’s.
All 20 of the OHL’s member clubs provide nominees for each award with the Bobby Smith Trophy nominees representing the 2013-14 OHL Scholastic Team:
2013-14 OHL Scholastic Team:
Barrie Colts – Andrew Mangiapane
Belleville Bulls – Adam Laishram
Erie Otters – Connor McDavid
Guelph Storm – Adam Craievich
Kingston Frontenacs – Roland McKeown
Kitchener Rangers – Nick Magyar
London Knights – Owen MacDonald
Mississauga Steelheads – Jesse Barwell
Niagara IceDogs – Brendan Perlini
North Bay Battalion – Riley Bruce
Oshawa Generals – Michael Dal Colle
Ottawa 67’s – Travis Konecny
Owen Sound Attack – Brett Hargrave
Peterborough Petes – Mitchell Webb
Plymouth Whalers – Cullen Mercer
Saginaw Spirit – Eric Locke
Sarnia Sting – Noah Bushnell
Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds – Blake Speers
Sudbury Wolves – Nick Baptiste
Windsor Spitfires – Patrick Sanvido
